EL PASO, Texas (AP) - A U.S. Border Patrol agent in El Paso shot at a group of people hurling rocks at him from across the Rio Grande on Thursday. No one was injured.

Robert Boatright, assistant chief patrol agent for the Border Patrol in El Paso, said the group of suspected illegal immigrants threw the rocks after running back across the river from the United States when they spotted the agent. They threw the rocks from about 25 yards away.

The agent, who Boatright did not identify, fired at least once.

Ciudad Juarez police officers went to the area but did not find anyone, Boatright said.

Thursday's confrontation, reported in the midst of the federal trial of two agents accused of unlawfully shooting a suspected drug smuggler and trying to hide the crime last year, is one more example of the rising danger along the U.S.-Mexico border, Boatright said. More than 770 assaults were reported last fiscal year, compared with just 396 in 2004.

The incident also coincided with a U.S. Senate hearing about increasing violence along the border.

So-called "rockings," as Border Patrol officials describe incidents like Thursday's, have become so prevalent in recent years that the federal agency has erected high-impact plastic glass barriers in spots along the Rio Grande where agents can park their vehicles in and around El Paso. Agents in some parts of the border are even starting to see "flaming rocks" - rocks wrapped in cloth, soaked in alcohol and lit on fire.

"We've had rock assaults where there was certainly sufficient velocity to break a windshield," Boatright said.

"Nobody did get hurt today but rocks can cause severe damage to someone's skull or face."

"A U.S. Border Patrol agent in El Paso shot at a group of people hurling rocks at him from across the Rio Grande on Thursday. No one was injured. " .........Aww, shucks. What the Border Patrol needs is some of these. It's time for accuracy. No more misses!

Why are we the only country for whom border security is a law enforcement issue instead of one for the military?

This is a very poor start to what really needs to be done. The Mexican military has performed (by all accounts) at least 200 armed incursions onto US soil in the last ten years. Why have they not been taken under fire? This is what is demanded by the US Constitution. Here is the solution. Popular it ain't.

#1 Build the frickin' Berlin Wall, but better.

#2 Bring home most of the US troops currently stationed under NATO and let the EU take care of itself.....not to mention saving us a load of $$$ (which we can put into construction) while at the same time adroitly spanking the Eurotrash for not backing us up as allies should. I guess the Korean contingent should stay put given the realities of that situation.

#3 Replace all Border Patrol agents on the southern border with US troops, with rules of engagement that allow ....no....mandate shoot first, shoot often against any armed incursions. Put the Border Patrol on the northern border as a short term panacea.

#4 Give the US landowners on the border instructions and classes on use of military night observation gear, military commo gear and "Call for Fire" radio procedures. Use them as in place recon elements. Should they spot border crossing intruders they are able to whistle up a quick reaction force consisting of both air and ground assets. Divisions pulled from USAEURA (US Army Europe) could be permanently stationed at Fort Hood for maintenance and rotated into the border regions. Everybody should be fully armed and loaded fer bear. I'll bet that after the first five or so successful ambush ops on our side of the border, the rate of incursions will drop significantly.

I hear a lot of crap about the futility of building a barrier. Some activists communist politicians here, keep chanting this line about building a 50 foot fence will only grow 51 foot ladders....let me tell you folks, the Berlin Wall, once erected...worked. It worked because it was a layered fortification with guards and mines and dogs and patrols. That is what will be needed. If we hope to stay free it is our only choice.

31
posted on 03/03/2006 8:37:40 PM PST
by ExSoldier
(Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on dinner. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.)

Border Patrol should begin to carry wrist rocket slingshots ,to be able to give return fire in like kind

One of the guys in my unit brought one with him when we deployed to Iraq. He even mounted one of the laser sights for pellet guns on it. He fired ball bearings from it at Iraqi kids who threw rocks at our vehicles. That dude was a great shot.

I have check marks in both columns on this issue. Maybe once I'm Stateside again, with a few new perspectives, I might tackle this.

All I can relate, is this: since 2001, ARNG/ANG units have been involved with the borders and internal security. It's nowhere near the tempo it needs to be, for your scenario to come about - and for obvious reasons.

Given the current administration's relationship with our southern neighbors, do you truly think something will change prior to 2009?

The immigrant's offspring in me wants to remind of this: the Berlin Wall, and the rest of the Iron Curtain, were erected by Leftists, at the height of their power. It was not to keep the forces of capitalism out. It was to keep those in bondage to Socialism, in.

35
posted on 03/03/2006 9:14:17 PM PST
by Old Sarge
(Fobbit = REMF ... how do you like me now?)

The Border Patrol agent needs to go back to the shooting range and practice on hitting a target.

That would be a pretty long pistol shot. The Rio Grande is not the Mississippi, but it's not really narrow either. Obviously within rock throwing distance, but that could be 50 or 100 yards, which is a good long pistol shot.

Escalating border violence turned deadly Thursday night as Border Patrol agents shot a man who fired upon them. It was the first fatal shooting in the Border Patrol's Yuma sector in six years, according to the agency.

The shooting occurred at 11:28 p.m. at County 18-1/2 Street and the Colorado River, an area where hundreds of illegal aliens have been robbed at gunpoint. A man believed to be an accomplice of the deceased man was arrested for allegedly being involved in these robberies.

"The last fatal shooting here was maybe six years ago, and nobody remembers the one before that," said Yuma sector Border Patrol spokesman Chris Van Wagenen. "It's very rare."

Border Patrol agents were patrolling in the area when they were confronted by an armed suspect who fired at least one round at them, according to the Sheriff's Office and Border Patrol. Agents returned fire, striking the man, who died at the scene.

The name of the deceased has not been released because next of kin have not been notified. The Mexican Consulate has been contacted for assistance.

After the shooting, Border Patrol apprehended Diego Armando Mendieta De La Torre, 20, of Mexicali who is a suspect in the robberies.

"It's our hope that we've at least caught two," Wilmot said. "We know there are more suspects involved. We've had reports of from one to five suspects, depending on the size of the group being robbed."

YCSO said De La Torre would be booked into Yuma County jail for a charge of participating in a criminal syndicate. Other charges may be sought later.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is conducting a federal investigation of the shooting, the Border Patrol's Critical Incident Team is doing an internal investigation and YCSO is conducting the criminal investigation.

Wilmot said detectives were interviewing people Friday and working to find others involved in the armed robberies.

Since 2004, 195 people have been robbed in this same area of the border, Wilmot said. The numbers have skyrocketed from 25 in 2004 to 56 in 2005 to 114 already this year. And those numbers only include illegal aliens who were later apprehended by Border Patrol and reported the robberies  hundreds of others may have been robbed and never reported it.

Van Wagenen said the agents who fired on the man have been placed on administrative leave. He said he did not know how many agents were there or how many rounds had been fired.

While in the past it has been rare for shootings to occur, Van Wagenen admits that such an incident is not a surprise considering the increased violence on the border. The Border Patrol says it has seen a significant increase this fiscal year in assaults against agents and crimes against illegal aliens.

"We knew the violence was going to get worse as smugglers get frustrated. We knew it would get worse before it gets better," Van Wagenen said.

Wilmot said the body of the dead man will be sent to Tucson for autopsy. He said YCSO's investigation was expected to be lengthy.

The Border Patrol said it is fully cooperating with the YCSO and FBI on their investigations.

When they ban all of the rocks, only criminals will have rocks. I see a new group forming: People for the Ethical Treatment of Rocks, PETR. A new role for a guvment brockacy: Bureau of Alcohol Tabacco Firearms Explosives Rocks, BATFER. Feinstein (an old Gaelic name unless I'm mistaken) could pose with an assault rock, her fingers in a knuckle-ball grip. The Left could try to put manufacturers of rocks out of business. Really, it could happen.

49
posted on 03/04/2006 4:35:36 AM PST
by Simo Hayha
(An eduction is incomplete without instruction in the use of arms to defend against harm.)

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